1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to an improved relay having an armature, and at least one moveable contact element with an elongated slide for the transmission of the armature movement to the movable contact element. An improved method of manufacturing the relay is also disclosed.
2. Description of the Related Art
Relays having a slide for transmission of the switch motion, are generally known in the art. For example, German patent application DE-A-38 35 115 shows such a relay with an elongated, rod-shaped slide that is fabricated to a rigidly prescribed length. In such relays, tolerances due to the fabrication of the individual parts and the assembly thereof add so that relays of this type must often be adjusted after assembly to assure that the armature stroke also leads to the desired switch motion at the contact elements and also results in the production of a predetermined contact force. In traditional relays, the adjustment can be undertaken, for example, by a bending at the armature end or at the contact elements. The desired setting is thereby usually only achieved in a plurality of steps each with an intervening measurement. These adjustment procedures are difficult to automate. Furthermore, these procedures cannot be integrated into a normal manufacturing production line because the relay must be measured and readjusted multiple times.
German Letters Patent 10 61 441 also discloses a relay wherein the slide is of fixed length and is attached to the armature by an adjustable screw. Such an adjustment, however, requires not only extensive manual work but also requires a design that can no longer be justified in mass production.
Thus there remains a need in the art for a relay which is both reliable and easy to manufacture and which also does not require repeated adjustment and calibration in the manufacturing process.
One object of the present invention is thus to manufacture a relay wherein the adjustment for compensating manufacturing tolerances can be easily incorporated into the normal fabrication sequence. Another object of the present invention is to provide a relay which does not require multiple measurement and re-adjustment. Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following summary and detailed description of the present invention.